Midnight Meetings
by lkuecrar
Summary: Robin learns that Batman has been in a "car accident" and Raven goes with him to Gotham as moral support. Will this be the catalyst they need to take their friendship further? *This story is not action packed but is intended as a feel-good read*


AN: So, after lurking in this fandom for about SIX years, I finally decided to contribute to it. I hope that this is well written, as there are very few things worse than trying to read something riddled with errors. I really like the way this turned out, which is saying something since I haven't written anything that I actually liked in more than a year! Hopefully I'm breaking my writer's block!

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The day had started like any other. Beast Boy and Cyborg had been arguing about which breakfast food was superior and Starfire and Silkie were feasting on an inedible alien pudding. Robin was clicking away at the keys on his laptop, updating his already obsessive compulsively ordered profiles that he had created for every criminal he'd ever encountered. Raven had only been in the main room for a few moments when _it_ happened.

A surge of panic washed over Raven like a cold blast of water. No one in the room had seemed affected, though, making the empath believe her mind was playing tricks on her until she saw Robin's foot begin to tap. Robin _never_ fidgeted unless something was bothering him and even then it took a _big_ something to affect him.

Curious as to what could be bothering him so much, Raven didn't waste any time and made her way to the Boy Blunder. She took a seat across from him and realized that he hadn't even noticed her arrival. Robin had gone from casually typing to furiously slamming the keys, as if they were the cause of his problem.

Raven casually glanced around to make sure no one was in earshot before speaking quickly and quietly. "What's wrong?"

Robin jumped, as if he had been startled. Now she knew something was seriously wrong.

Robin had never looked more like a deer caught in the headlights than in that moment. "Not here." Robin rose from his spot on the couch and stormed out of the room, leaving Raven in confusion. It wasn't until Beast Boy asked her what she did to make him so angry did she follow the other bird.

Raven exited the main room and focused; soon she was following a trail of raw emotions: anger, sadness, worry, fear. The mixture was beginning to make her stomach churn and made her walk just a bit quicker. Anything that could frighten Robin this way was nothing to be trifled with. Raven came to a stop at the base of the stairs that led to the roof. Taking a calming breath, she walked the flight of stairs and opened the door.

Robin's figure seemed to glow in the early morning light, making her feel a familiar contentedness that she had begun to associate with his presence. After her father was defeated, Robin began to make a point to get to know her. She had taken note of a few errant emotions of his to realize that he wanted to befriend her and get to know her better since his chance was nearly taken from him. She understood the feeling—she, herself, had gone through the same feelings after her new beginning. After a week of trying to get to know Beast Boy, though, she got over it.

Their friendship wasn't a conventional one—they only met at random times in the middle of the night. The meetings were usually after one or the other had a nightmare or if they just felt the need to talk something out. The two birds had become extremely in tune with the emotional state of the other, an effect that was only amplified by their mental bond. She could feel the bond growing stronger and stronger each day and was afraid to find out what would happen if they were to attempt to separate one day.

Robin's voice cut through the cool morning air, although Raven knew that he hadn't seen her arrival. "I got news that Bruce was in a _car accident_ this morning." Robin's emphasis on "car accident" made her realize that the Batman had most _definitely_ not been in a car accident and that his injuries were much more severe than a measly car could inflict on someone like Bruce Wayne.

Raven had known about Batman's secret identity for nearly two years now. When Slade was playing tricks with Robin's mind and Raven formed the bond, she had to search for Slade first. She had seen a few stray memories, including Batman's real identity. Robin had only opened up to her about those memories, though, in the past few months during midnight meetings. Apparently, Bruce had only yelled at Robin for an hour for compromising his identity before forcing Raven to promise to keep her lips sealed. She had been too afraid of the intimidating man to disagree with him.

Robin's voice seemed strained, as if he had been yelling for hours. "Alfred said Bruce's in critical condition. He's in surgery right now. They don't know if he's gonna make it."

Robin wasn't afraid—Richard Grayson was. She immediately knew that the situation was much more delicate than she had figured it to be and that Robin very rarely opened up about his past. She didn't know what he would do if he lost the closest person he had to a father but vowed that she wouldn't wait around to find out, even if it meant healing the man himself.

Stepping up beside the eighteen year old, Raven lightly brushed his shoulder with her own while staring out towards the ocean. "When are we leaving?"

Raven could feel his gaze boring into the side of her head. She spoke again in a no-nonsense voice, letting him know that she wasn't going to budge. "You obviously want to go see him and I'm not letting you travel alone. It's not like he'll be able to tell if I'm there or not, so you don't have to worry about him trying to stab me with a scalpel or something." At his look of confusion, she continued. "You know he doesn't like that I know who he really is, which translates to him not liking me."

Robin was quiet for a while. Just as Raven was about to apologize for intruding, he spoke quietly. "You'd come with me? Even if we stayed for a while?" Raven had only heard him speak like that a few times, when he was at his most vulnerable. The last time she had heard him speak in that tone, it had been the morning after Trigon's defeat.

Raven cocked an eyebrow and looked at him out of the corner of her eye. "I like to think that I could manage Gotham City for you, although Gotham isn't much when compared to Hell." Robin's rescue mission into Hell for her on her sixteenth birthday still astounded Raven, even though she was halfway through her seventeenth year now. She knew she would always feel unable to repay him for what he did for her that day but she never would give up trying.

Robin surprised her by hugging her tightly before quickly letting go. "I guess we need to pack then." Raven's mind went blank the second he touched her. Robin sent her a brilliant smile, unaware of how a simple touch had completely unraveled her. "I'm sure Cy will be happy to run things for a few days."

The Boy Wonder hurried into the tower, leaving Raven on the roof in an emotional mess. Just as she had gotten her emotions calmed, the door opened and Robin stuck his head back out and sent her a brilliant smile. "Oh yeah… Bruce likes you Raven, don't think otherwise." With that, he left, along with the last shred of control over her emotions.

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Raven was beginning to regret teleporting them to Gotham. She had been sitting in the empty waiting room for nigh on seven hours, although Robin had gotten to see Bruce an hour ago. At least if they had traveled normally, she would have only had to wait in the room for two hours. Not to mention, the jeans and hoody that she was wearing in order to blend in were driving her crazy. Her leotard and cloak were much less restrictive and much more comfortable than the civilian clothes she had to reluctantly wear.

She had been shocked when Robin changed into regular clothes as well. The button-up shirt and dark jeans looked nice on him but she wasn't sure if she'd ever get used to him wearing anything but his traffic light getup. The biggest change, though, was that he wasn't wearing a mask. She'd seen his eyes once before during one of their late night meetings but never in broad daylight. The pride she felt when realizing that he trusted her that much was unmatched by anything she had ever felt in her life.

She had thumbed through all of the magazines in the waiting room twice when Robin, or Richard as she had to call him in public, came back to the room with suspiciously red eyes and a weak smile. Raven was glad to see that he was okay but she was seriously hoping that they could leave now. If she had to smell that rank coffee any longer she would jump out of the nearest window and fall to her death, flying abilities be damned.

Robin seemed to see her unhappiness with the situation and weakly laughed before gesturing for her to follow him out. She uncharacteristically hopped out of her seat and nearly ran after him, glad to be rid of the waiting room. The two walked to the parking garage in silence until Robin approached a black SUV.

Raven looked at him in confusion as he unlocked the door before clearing her throat. "What are you doing?"

Robin looked confused. "What? I told Alfred to bring it by this afternoon and that we'd come to Wayne Manor after I'd seen Bruce."

Raven felt panicked. They were staying at _Batman's _house? Raven schooled her features before Robin could notice and spoke monotonously. "I can't stay in someone's home when I don't even know them."

Robin rolled his eyes. "Raven, you know me and I'm giving you permission to stay there. It's fine. Alfred won't mind and Bruce wouldn't mind either. It's not like there isn't enough room."

It was clear that Robin had made up his mind and nothing could change it. Chanting her mantra in her head, Raven quickly made her way into the vehicle with a sigh. "Fine. I hope you can drive this better than your motorcycle."

The ride to Wayne Manor was spent with only the soft sound of a local radio station playing softly through the vehicle. Raven wouldn't admit it to Robin but she was glad she didn't have to teleport them again; teleporting to Gotham had taken a toll on her and she wasn't even sure that she _could_ teleport them to a place she's only ever heard Robin talk of only a handful of times.

Just as they turned onto a long gravel driveway, Raven broke the silence. "I could try to heal him some tomorrow. I wouldn't be able to heal his wounds completely but I could try to pull him into safety."

Raven grunted when Robin slammed on the brakes and the seatbelt dug into her chest. Angrily she looked at him but wished she hadn't. The look he was sending her made her feel extremely uncomfortable, as if he could see everything within her all at once. She just hoped that he wouldn't look too hard, lest he stumble across something he didn't like.

The two stared at each other silently until Robin finally broke the spell that seemed to have fallen over them. "Why do you hide how good of a person you are?"

Raven's mouth went dry when she noticed the slow-burning smolder in his darkening blue eyes. Her mouth opened and closed a few times before she seemingly gave up on trying to find a response to his question, knowing that she wouldn't be able to think clearly until he stopped looking at her like that.

He seemed to notice her surrender and tried again. "You are kind, unimaginably so, but… you hide it from everyone. Why? Although your sarcasm and wit are what makes you, well, _you_, so does your compassion."

He saw her as _kind_? Raven could only roll her eyes. "Always seeing the good in everyone, aren't you? Maybe I should start sending Beast Boy to other dimensions more often so I can get my reputation back."

Raven watched Robin's jaw tick. He clearly didn't appreciate the joke. "See! That's exactly what I'm talking about! Why do you _want_ a reputation of being difficult?"

Her eyes narrowed at that. "Difficult? You want difficult? I'll show you difficult." Unlatching her seatbelt, Raven slid out of the vehicle and began stomping up the drive. She heard the vehicle vroom back to life and slowly drive beside her but she still refused to look. She knew that if she looked at him, he'd be able to get her to do anything. She wasn't done grilling him, though, and ignored his numerous apologies.

Robin must have realized that he was getting nowhere with his current tactic and finally stopped the vehicle and got out. Raven sighed when she heard his footsteps pounding towards her—there went her fun.

The only source of light was the headlights of the SUV that night. The trees that lined the drive were gnarled over the path, blocking out all of the light from the moon and stars. The sight of Robin jogging towards her, bathed in the warm light from the headlights, made her wonder just when she had become so pliable. If Raven had been told two years ago that Robin, of all people, could have gotten her to do anything he asked, she would have been torn between maiming and laughing.

Robin was still spouting apologies but Raven was paying them no mind. Her mind was elsewhere, thinking about the possible ramifications of if she kissed him. She had lived her entire life in fear of the what-ifs: as a child, she had feared what would have happened if she had been allowed to love her mother; when she first came to Earth, she feared what would happen if the Justice League turned her away after they discovered what she was; as a teenager, she feared what would happen if she let her Father win. Even now, she feared what would happen if she let herself love someone.

The boy, no _man_, in front of her showed her that she could be her own person—he showed her that she didn't _have _to fear those consequences anymore. He showed her that he would be there to save her, no matter what it took.

Raven focused back on Robin, only to see him pulling at his hair and pacing in front of her. He was in the middle of explaining, in his own confused way, why he asked the question in the first place. She knew he'd continue on for as long as she let him.

Raven took a steadying breath and spoke before she lost her nerve. "Robin, I'm going to kiss you."

Unsurprisingly, the Boy Wonder froze in his tracks. Raven swallowed and tentatively moved towards him, unsure of how to proceed. Shakily, Raven stood on her toes and touched his lips softly with her own.

Robin seemed to restart after the small touch and wrapped his arms around Raven tightly, pulling her into his embrace as if he were trying to protect her from the world. Raven, feeling more confident, pressed her lips to his again and gasped when he nibbled on her lower lip. The familiar crackle of her magic surrounded the two and the sound of a snapping limb could be heard nearby, breaking the spell surrounding the two.

Raven stepped back just a bit, although Robin still had both of his arms wrapped around her waist. She wasn't entirely sure _what _to say, other than that had been the most pleasant thing she'd ever experienced. He hadn't even attempted to push her away, either, which was always a good sign.

Robin surprised her when he spoke, his tone gravely and a tad lower than it usually was. "That was…"

Raven attempted to don her regular mask of indifference but failed miserably. "Probably unexpected but I'm not sorry." The quiver in her voice made it clear that the kiss had affected her greatly.

Robin hugged her closer to him and rested his head on top of hers. "Unexpected maybe but certainly not unwanted." The Boy Blunder's words made her release a sigh that she hadn't been aware of holding.

The two stood in front of the headlights for a time, just reveling in the fact that everything was out in the open now. Raven had expected her powers to blow up more than a limb but she wasn't going to complain. She laid her hand on Robin's chest and looked up to his face, still surprised that things had turned out in her favor for once. "So… what now?"

Robin chuckled a bit, awkwardly scratching the back of his neck. "Well, I wouldn't mind doing that again. It'd look bad, though, if we were doing that and weren't dating properly. So… what do you say?"

Raven raised her eyebrow, knowing that she was going to have fun making him squirm. "'What do I say' about what? You never asked me anything."

Although it was dark, Raven could make out the rosy blush spreading across Robin's cheeks. "You know… Will… you be my… girlfriend?"

Robin looked as if he were going to combust on the spot after uttering that final word, although Raven didn't feel much better off than he looked.

That didn't mean she couldn't make him sweat a bit more for his earlier comment, though. "I'll have to add you to the list of candidates. Right now, it's between you and Speedy."

The other Titan had shown an interest in Raven in passing, although he had never actively pursued her beyond a few flirty comments. Robin didn't know that though. "Speedy?! But… why him?! He's so arrogant—and… and he thinks he's brilliant too but he's not! I'm a better fighter too! I've taken him down a few times now!"

She couldn't say that she was surprised to see Robin get jealous so quickly. He had always been competitive, regardless of if he was trying to win a battle or a girl. Robin became especially competitive when the competitor was Speedy, though.

She let Robin petition for a few more moments as to why he was the better choice before she cut him off with a kiss. "Luckily for you, I happen to like dark hair over light. Sure, I'll be your _girlfriend_." Raven sauntered back to the SUV and got into the passenger seat, leaving Robin standing in the middle of the drive in shock.

Raven motioned for him to hurry and leaned her head out of the window. "Are you coming? I'm cold, tired, and would prefer to be in a bed when I fall asleep." Standing outside in the middle of the night during winter in Gotham hadn't been her brightest idea.

Robin shot her another brilliant smile and made his way back to the vehicle, with a renewed vigor in his step. Raven could barely contain the smile that stayed on her face for the rest of the night, not even in sleep. Although she'd be spending the next few weeks visiting a hospital, she was sure that there was nowhere else she'd rather be. The next few weeks wouldn't be easy—no recovery ever was—but she was determined to make it breeze by as smoothly as possible for both Robin and Bruce. She'd finally be able to help Robin in his time of need and she was ready to do everything in her power to fix his problems, even if it meant dealing with a grumpy Batman. Although, she hoped he'd be less grumpy if she healed his banged up body.

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AN: There it is! I really hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! If you did, favorite and review! I love any type of review, be it a simple one stating you like/hate it or a complex one full of critique! I'll even take flames-I'll keep my fingers warm with them when I write my next fanfiction!


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